In regards to the Crossfit games, many of the people who compete in them were already fairly athletic before they started the training. I think it would be a better discussion to center it around the more average person looking to get into shape who enters these types of programs.

In regards to the Crossfit games, many of the people who compete in them were already fairly athletic before they started the training. I think it would be a better discussion to center it around the more average person looking to get into shape who enters these types of programs.

Exactly. The training of the people who do well in their games hardly even resembles "crossfit."

In regards to the Crossfit games, many of the people who compete in them were already fairly athletic before they started the training. I think it would be a better discussion to center it around the more average person looking to get into shape who enters these types of programs.

I would agree that the Crossfit Games attracts fairly athletic people to begin with, but those at the highest level in any sport (powerlifting, O-lifting, track and field, bodybuiding, etc.) had some natural abilities/traits to begin with. Do you think world-class sprinters were slow when they started? Was the World's Strongest Man (those competitions on ESPN) naturally weak when he began. No, he was a strong bastard from day 1.

I won't argue with this - my question is whether a sane person can keep up with crossfit for 20 years. there are people at my boxing gym who have been boxing 30-40 years, how many people do some of the fad excersizes that bloomed in the 70's, and I am not sure that crossfit isn't going to go the same way. but that is my feeling, I just don't find it as interesting as boxing, some people do.

A few points you've made here:

1. The fact that you don't find Crossfit interesting is totally reasonable, and a very important point for anyone looking to get into working out. As the saying goes, the most effective training program is the one you actually stick to. If you don't enjoy something, you'll never stick with it, and you'll never see long-term results. That being said, this is a very subjective criteria. The fact that you don't find the Crossfit style of training interesting means it isn't for you, but it's hard to apply that to anyone else.

2. In spite of the rep Crossfit gets for being all about high-intensity-make-you-puke workouts, one of the core beliefs of the program is that it be sustainable over a lifetime. In fact, this is the point that gets stressed at coaching certifications more than any other. The loudest Crossfitters may be 25 year old frat-boy douches, but the program is designed to be inclusive, even for the de-conditioned and the elderly. This comes out of an understanding that functional movements (squats, deadlifts, presses), if performed with consistently good form, should almost never lead to injury, and out of a belief in infinite scaleability. The result is that you can run a 65 year-old grandmother through what is essentially the same workout as a 20 year-old college athlete. Will the intensity level be the same? Of course not, but the goal is only to maximize relative intensity in a safe, consistent manner. This in contrast to things like distance running - the most popular form of exercise in America - which injures something like a third of all participants annually.

3. I do want to second (third?) the comments about finding a good gym with quality coaching. As with anything, the coach matters more than the program. I've had the good fortune to workout at two of the best coached Crossfit gyms in the US, and have dropped into some pretty bad ones. Well-coached gyms focus on mechanics, then consistency, then intensity. They routinely hold athletes back from muscling through a workout with bad form. They run the classes like... well... classes, with actual teaching. In contrast, "bro" gyms with poor coaching focus almost exclusively on intensity, on increasing weights and decreasing times, and do very little teaching. They encourage athletes to push themselves beyond the point of safety, and as a result see a lot of preventable injuries.

One thing to think about when signing up for any program like this, whether it be Crossfit of boxing. Are you just looking for a space to workout on your own, or are you looking for coaching? If you want coaching, understand that having a coach is about having accountability. Sometimes your coach will tell you things you don't want to hear ("no more weight on the bar until you fix your back position," for instance.) This is a good thing. It keeps you safe and gets you stronger. Your coach is not your cheerleader.

Both serve their purpose. The people you tend to find at crossfit gyms will be far more annoying - although I haven't been around many boxing gyms. It is totally dependent on your goals. If you want to get big, neither is ideal. If you want to condition yourself while staying in great shape, either will do. Don't get me wrong, you can build muscle doing either one, but there's a reason that body builders aren't crossfitters or boxers. I used to train at a crossfit-style gym and loved it, but I ended up putting a power cage in my home along with a concept 2, and it's much more convenient - but what I learned at that gym was valuable in terms of modifying my home training techniques.

I put on a significant amount of muscle at this gym - but it's important to note that I was not partaking in traditional crossfit workouts.

a third option, martial arts (I like traditonal JKA Shotokan Karate-do, only because it is what I was introduced to by a great teacher)

cardio, breath control

strength

flexibility

balance

coordination

ambidexterity, we train the weak or off side 10-20% more than our strong side

mental control, managing stress/fear/duress

forget about the combat aspect or the mental/lifestyle type of thing, it can be a total exercise program, and a modern form/school was developed as such by a PhD in physical conditioning and sanctioned by the ministry of education as 'PT', heavily based on sport science (back in the 30' before that term was fashionable)

it can be adapted as you age, adjust the pace and area of concentration, say kata vs kumite\or for physical handicaps

but you have got to find the right sensei, it is key, not some gung-ho crazy person